The ICC Champions Trophy is lined up in less than 48 hours, making a comeback after 8 years since it was last held in 2017. The format has been changed in the current edition regarding the eligibility of the teams to compete in the tournament and we are here to tell you all about it.
This is the 9th edition of the tournament, with previous ones being held at uneven intervals. The tournament will take place in Pakistan, with all the matches of India being held in Dubai as the team was not allowed to travel to the host nation.
In the first eight editions, the format was a bit different as only the top teams in the ICC Men’s ODI Team Rankings qualified for the tournament. These rankings were based on the points each team received after playing an ODI match. A team’s total points were divided by the number of matches played to decide its ranking.
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However, as of ICC’s recent announcement of the change in the format of the Champions Trophy 2025, only the top eight teams of the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 will qualify for the tournament. The top eight teams were India, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Afghanistan, England and Bangladesh.
For the Champions Trophy, these eight teams have been divided into two groups:
Group A: India, Pakistan, New Zealand, and Bangladesh.
Group B: South Africa, Australia, England, and Afghanistan.
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Due to this, Sri Lanka and West Indies could not qualify for this year’s edition as Sri Lanka finished 9th and West Indies finished outside of the qualifying teams during the World Cup Qualifiers 2023. Both teams have appeared in six out of eight seasons, having won one title each.
In the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, the two groups of four teams will play against the other three teams in their own groups for a total of 12 matches. The top two teams of each group will face the other group’s top teams in the knockout stage. The knockout stage will have two semi-finals and a final that will be played on 9 March.
The tournament starts on 19 February in three cities across Pakistan and Dubai. A total of 15 matches will be played in 19 days. The matches will be available for live streaming on Star Sports Network, Sports18, JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar.
Also Read: IPL 2025 Schedule Announced: Dates, Teams, and Venues
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